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Decatur Girls Drop Heartbreaker

BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s girls’ varsity soccer team lost a heartbreaker last week, falling to Reservoir, 3-2, on penalty kicks after two overtime periods to drop out of the state Class 3A-East playoffs.

The Seahawks, seeded third in the tournament, won two playoff games to earn a match-up with second-seeded Reservoir in the Class 3A-East regional semifinals, but could not get over the last hump to reach the state’s Final Four last Friday. Decatur’s Bradley Janson and Taylor Blazer each scored goals in regulation, but Reservoir scored two goals of its own and the game ended in a 2-2 tie.

After two tense overtime periods, during which each team had scoring opportunities, the match came down to penalty kicks. For Decatur, Janson and Blazer each scored on penalty kicks during the decisive phase of the game, but Reservoir got one more and escaped with the win and advance in the tournament. Decatur keeper Leigh Ann Flounlacker, who was solid all season and throughout the playoff run, collected 15 saves in the tough loss.

Decatur reached the region semifinals by beating Centennial, 2-1, and Bel Air, 3-0. The loss to Reservoir in the region semifinals did not tarnish what was otherwise an outstanding season for the Seahawks, who finished with an 11-3-1 record on the year and had won seven straight before the loss last Friday. Six of Decatur’s eight regular season wins were shutouts including a late four-game stretch where it beat Snow Hill, 10-0; Mardela, 6-0; Bennett, 1-0; and Wicomico, 4-0.

Despite the tough loss last week, the Decatur girls went much farther in the states this year than they did last year. In 2007, the Seahawks entered the regionals as the four-seed in the Class 3A-East playoffs but fell to Atholton in the first round.